Michigan weighs longer school year

March 30, 2009|By TIM WEATHERHEAD Capital News Service

LANSING -- Almost all of Michigan's public schools don't meet the old state mandate of 180 class days, and money is the reason, education officials say. "It all boils down to finances," said Sturgis Public Schools Superintendent Rob Olsen. "Most of the districts have reduced days and increased the minutes in a day due to the fact that it's cost-saving." Olsen said his district, which scheduled 178 school days this year, is fiscally stable at the moment. "Financially, we're in good shape, but if we keep going the way we are as a state, I'm not sure what's going to happen," he added. In 2003, legislators changed the mandate that set a minimum number of school days to a minimum 1,098 total hours. Meanwhile, experts are debating how lessening school days and increasing minutes in a day will affect students. "The critical issue isn't so much when they're there," said Craig Roney, assistant dean of teacher education at Wayne State University. "The critical issue is what you do when you have them there. "You could increase or decrease the time you have them there, but if you don't change the way you're doing things, you won't get much change in terms of the effect," Roney said. Roney said he could envision some potentially adverse effects of lengthier but fewer days. "There are some counter-arguments that do make sense to me," he said. "If children are fatigued, they won't learn as well. If you extend the day, what effects will that have on their level of alertness? "On the other hand, if you give breaks in the day and provide a good lunch, it might make sense to do that," Roney said. The Center for Michigan, a nonpartisan think tank based in Ann Arbor, published a recent report, "School Daze," that said more than 98 percent of the schools don't meet the old state requirement. The report also said that if Michigan schools got returned to at least 180 days, they would significantly lag the rest of the industrialized world. The Michigan Association of School Boards is working with legislators to reinstate a mandatory minimum number of school days. James Feil, superintendent of Traverse City Area Public Schools, would like to see summer break shortened. "Research identifies that some kids lose knowledge over the summer because of long gaps," he said. "I definitely believe we should be doing more, and I think kids are capable." However, Vickie Markavitch, superintendent of the Oakland Intermediate School District, cautioned that the state's school system faces more serious issues when it's compared with other countries' systems. "The problem is bigger than adding 10 days or a number of hours," she said. Markavitch said the curriculum taught in American schools is too broad. She said that teachers should slow down so they can place a heavy emphasis on certain topics and make sure students understand the material, making the U.S. more competitive globally. "In fourth-grade math classes, the U.S. teaches 78 topics in 180 days of instruction," she said. "Japan teaches 47 topics in 253 days of instruction and Germany teaches 23 subjects in 230 days of instruction."